The Jackfield Works.—The site of the present works carried on by Craven, Dunnill, & Co., for the manufacture of Encaustic and Geometrical tiles, is that of the above old pottery in Jackfield, in which Hargreaves and Craven for several years made geometrical tiles by the clay-dust process, and encaustic tiles from plastic clay; but the buildings being old and dilapidated, Mr. H. P. Dunnill formed a limited liability company, consisting of seven shareholders, for rebuilding and carrying on the concern. The old buildings were taken down, a considerable extent of land added to the premises, and on this land the present handsome new works were erected. They now cover an extent of nearly two acres of ground, and are fitted with machinery and arrangements specially adapted to the requirements of the trade, each department succeeding the other in perfect rotation; so that the clay goes into the blunging-house at one point, from thence into the slip-kilns, mill-room, damping-houses, press-shops, encaustic rooms, drying-stove, seggar-house, firing and glaze-kilns, sorting-house, warehouses, packing-room, and finally, having in the various processes gone the circuit of the manufactory, passes into the railway lurries to be conveyed to various parts of the kingdom and abroad. The fine clays of Jackfield and Broseley are largely used in the manufacture, and within the grounds of the works there is a pit in which, from a depth of thirty-five yards, is brought up by steam-power a beautiful red clay, of very fine tone of colour. The firm justly pride themselves on the colour and quality of their plain tiles; and the hardness of their buff tiles—a point much desired by the trade—is very noticeable. The colour and hardness of body of their dove tiles are also very apparent. In encaustic tiles many beautiful designs by Waterhouse, Goldie, Gibbs, Bentley, and other architects are produced. At the instance of one of the firm, Mr. A. H. Brown, M.P. for Wenlock, a noticeable arrangement has been made in the interest of the work-people. Any profit made after ten per cent. paid to the proprietors is equally divided between them and the work-people, and the latter have thus a direct interest to do their work in the best manner, so as to add to the reputation of the firm. Glazed tiles for hearths, of great variety and beauty of pattern, are made here, and also glazed wall tiles in white, cream, celadon, and other tones. The company also produce majolica tiles of the richest class, with an endless variety of printed, painted, and art tiles for decorative purposes. The quality of the tiles is remarkably good; the colours are pure and clear, the body hard and durable, and the glaze firm. Many of the patterns are of extreme beauty and excellence. The marks adopted, impressed on the back of the tiles, are—

HARGREAVES
&
CRAVEN

HARGREAVES CRAVEN
DUNNILL & CO
JACKFIELD
NR IRONBRIDGE SALOP

CRAVEN DUNNILL & CO
LIMITED
JACKFIELD
NR IRONBRIDGE SALOP

HARGREAVES
CRAVEN DUNNILL & CO
JACKFIELD

CRAVEN
DUNNILL & CO
JACKFIELD
SALOP

CRAVEN
& CO

Benthall Works.—The manufactory of encaustic tiles, mosaics, and majolica, which has for the last twenty-two years been carried on by Messrs. Maw, at the Benthall works, near Broseley, was initiated at Worcester (as named in my account of the works of Mr. St. John in that city) in the year 1850, where Messrs. Maw commenced experimenting on the processes of manufacture on the premises formerly occupied by the Worcester Porcelain Manufactory, when under the hands of Messrs. Flight and Barr, and afterwards used for the production of encaustic tiles by my late friend Mr. Fleming St. John and his partners, by whom the moulds, &c., which had been used by them in the manufacture of encaustic tiles were sold to Messrs. Maw. These gentlemen at once saw that a much wider field was open to them in the production of tiles than had previously been attempted at Worcester. In 1852, Messrs. Maw, feeling the necessity for carrying on the manufacture in a neighbourhood which would produce both the coal and the clay, abandoned the works at Worcester, and removed their moulds, plant, &c., to the Benthall works, near Broseley, where another seven years was spent by them in a series of costly experiments with no immediate profit except the experience gained by which they have subsequently built up the business. Their first effort was to thoroughly investigate and experiment upon the clays of the Shropshire coal-field, as well as the plastic materials found throughout the kingdom, many of which no one had before attempted to turn to economic account.